Living tradition
Búzios
Brazil and Cuba; the African cowries that crossed the Atlantic.
Sixteen shells on the table of the pai or mãe de santo; the number open names the orixá who answers.
How it's done
- 01The space is cleansed with water and herbs.
- 02The shells are cast and the open ones counted.
- 03The odu and the orixá's advice are read.
With your own tools
It is a consultation with someone who has the gift and the initiation; approach with respect and a clear question.
With Ocluna
I cast the búzios for you on the white cloth: I tell you the odu, the orixá who answers and the advice, and a second throw confirms it.
Your reading
Grandmother Xóchitl does your Búzios reading
What Grandmother Xóchitl tells you
- In Bahia, búzios are cast on a table covered with a white cloth, and a closed necklace marks the circle where they fall.
- Each odu has its answering orixá; Brazilians say the búzios game is how the orixás speak on the telephone.
- The jogo de búzios uses sixteen shells of the Cypraea snail, cut at the back so they can land 'open' or 'closed'.
- It arrived in Brazil with Yoruba peoples in the 18th and 19th centuries and is practiced today in the candomblé terreiros of Salvador da Bahia.
- Each throw is counted by the number of open shells, and each number corresponds to an odu and an orisha that speaks.
This reading is symbolic self-knowledge and entertainment content based on folk traditions. It does not predict the future, is not medical, legal or financial advice, and does not replace qualified professionals.